Louisiana bass fishing is a huge industry, with four of the state’s lakes among the best in the country, including Caney Lake, D’Arbonne Lake, Toledo Bend Reservoir, and Bussey Brake.
In Louisiana, it’s more about fishing on the bayou than it is fishing on a lake. Of course, there is nothing quite as scenic and serene as fishing in the cool shade of a giant oak, covered in low-hanging Spanish Moss.
The most quintessentially American fish should enjoy enormous popularity in the state of Louisiana. It’s not just about smallmouth and largemouth either, with the state famous for white, spotted, striped, and yellow bass as well.
16 Best Lakes & Rivers for Bass Fishing
Two things you can assure yourself of, when bass fishing in the state of Louisiana, is plenty of bayou beauty and plenty of bass. Here are 16 of the hottest lakes and rivers for bass fishing in the state.
1. Caney Lake
Easily one of the most recognizable bass fishing lakes in the entire state, Caney Lake is a 5,000-acre body of water in Jackson Parish. The state record was caught here at 15.9lbs. If you go to Caney Lake, you’re not looking for a ton of bass, you’re looking for big bass.
The average weight range for largemouth bass caught in Caney Lake is between 6 lbs and 9lbs. Local anglers agree that springtime is the best time of the year to fish for bass on Caney Lake.
2. The Atchafalaya Basin
You may not be able to pronounce it, but you do need to fish it. The Atchafalaya Basin is a very popular spot for bass fishing in Louisiana, with one of the highest bite rates in the entire state.
You’re not going to catch huge bass here, but you will catch a bunch. Atchafalaya is known for being the largest wetland swamp in the country. It owes its waters to the Gulf of Mexico, and it’s about as close to pristine, beautiful swampland as you will get.
3. Red River
You’ll find one of the heaviest populations of largemouth bass in Louisiana along the Red River. If there is one this river is known for, it’s the constantly changing environment. The Red River is never at rest, but for some reason, bass love it.
There are a lot of stops along the curving course of the Red River, including a lot of coves and tributaries, which bass flow into at almost the same rate as the river itself.
4. Lake Chicot
This is one of the lesser-known lakes in Louisiana and local anglers would prefer to keep it that way since Lake Chicot is loaded with huge, largemouth bass. You’ll have to do a lot of shoreline fishing here, with trees blocking large chunks of the lake when it leads into bass cove hot zones.
Spinnerbaits and plastic lures have a lot of success here since the river is full of crawfish. Worst case scenario, you can load up on crawfish and have a heck of a crawfish boil back at the house.
5. Chef Menteur Pass
With the outstanding cooking that takes place in Louisiana (everyone in Louisiana is an unbelievable cook it seems), it stands to reason that a lake had to start with “Chef.” It certainly helps that Chef Menteur Pass is deep and loaded with largemouth bass.
Working the topwater with frog lures and spinnerbaits are the key to success at Chef Menteur Pass. According to locals, if you hit the Pass with the right rig, you will fill up your cooler without a problem.
6. Ouachita River Lakes
This is actually a slice of river that joins points on the Louisiana side, and it’s a very popular conglomeration of striped, largemouth, and spotted bass. Many of the local anglers believe that the success of this point along a river that flows out of Arkansas is a result of being a calm point.
Apparently, the Ouachita River is a pretty turbulent river on the Arkansas side but calms at the point where it rolls down into Louisiana. It makes for an excellent refuge and relaxing point for bass and a great place to cast your line as well.
7. Valentine Lake
Valentine Lake flows directly through Kisatchie National Forest and is known for holding some of the largest bass in the state. There is a unique thing going on here that makes for giant largemouth bass.
Several things actually—in 2014 the lake’s vegetation was cleared out, and there are frequent dumps of baitfish throughout the lake as a habitat effort. This ensures the bass here are well-fed and grow to gigantic proportions.
8. Cypress Bayou Reservoir
The Cypress Bayou reservoir is one of the most popular bass fishing spots in northern Louisiana. Located just outside of Bossier City, the nearly 4,000-acre reservoir is a hot spot for bass, crappie, and catfish.
The springtime is the most productive and popular with local anglers, especially between April and June, when topwater baits do the trick. However, fall is excellent as well, especially if you bring along some spinnerbaits and buzzbaits.
9. Toledo Bend Reservoir
The Toledo Bend Reservoir is balanced between Texas and Louisiana and is ranked in the top five for best bass fishing spots in the country. It’s also known to be a producer of monster bass.
The reservoir is a massive 186,000 acres in size, but one of the best spots to fish for bass is in Toledo Bend, especially in April. Speaking of monster bass, it is not uncommon to catch 13lb to 15lb bass here.
10. Grand Bayou Reservoir
Being in Louisiana, it stands to reason we would have the term “bayou” in here somewhere. The entire reservoir covers about 2,500 acres and is a great place for anglers to try out their crankbaits.
The Grand Bay Reservoir is famous for sightings of huge schools of bass. Carolina rigs are supposed to work well on this reservoir as well. The best spots are on the main channel and drop-off edges throughout the reservoir.
11. D’Arbonne Lake
The lake that only recently made its way into the top 25 for best bass fishing is D’Arbonne Lake. Growing in popularity, D’Arbonne churns out 8 and 10-pound bass on a fairly common level.
Originally, D’Arbonne Lake was one of the best lakes in the country for catching crappie. However, bass fishing numbers exploded in recent years, catapulting the lake up in the list.
12. Caddo Lake
If you’re looking to bring home some white bass, Caddo Lake is the spot to be. It’s also known for producing a ton of largemouth bass as well, so you get to kill two birds with one stone when you fish Caddo Lake.
Bass love the low-hanging cypress shade, and the lake is full of underwater vegetation. It’s nothing if not a nice, secure home for bass. Topwater frog baits have a high degree of success, especially if you can work it through the vegetation and the lily pads.
13. Lacassine Pool
Monster bass haunts the waters of Lacassine Pool, and they do so in numbers. It’s not uncommon to hook 12-pounders on this marsh that stretches across 1,600 acres. Like Caddo Lake, it’s loaded with vegetation and lily pads.
Also, like Caddo Lake, working topwater frogs has a high degree of success, especially in the more shallow areas of the lake. However, flukes will charm the bass when they move out into deeper water over the winter months.
14. Poverty Point Reservoir
There is nothing “poverty” about the number of bass in the 2,700-acre, man-made lake, Poverty Point. Before they filled the lake, they had the presence of mind to create a variety of brush piles throughout.
Now, those piles are havens for countless largemouth and white bass. Local anglers recommend bringing along a good fish finder that can map the underwater topography. Once you find the brush piles, the rest of your day is gold.
15. Vernon Lake
If you want a change of scenery in the bass department, Vernon Lake is a popular spot for yellow bass. Vernon Lake is known for its gigantic schools of yellow bass as well as equally large schools of largemouth bass.
Topwater frogs work well here, thanks to the heavy vegetation and lily pads throughout the lake. If you’re looking for a hot spot, travel to the northern section of the lake, especially during the winter. It’s deeper on the north end, and rattletraps or spinnerbaits are the rigs to go with.
16. Lake Salvador
Last but not least, Lake Salvador brings our list of the 16 best lakes in Louisiana for bass fishing to a close. While it’s not the hottest lake for bass fishing, it is an absolute hot zone for largemouth bass in the fall.
Crankbaits and topwater lures (frogs again) work well here, especially since largemouth bass feast on the abundant crawfish in the lake. The most popular fishing areas are along the entire shoreline, along with Catahoula Bay.
Types of Bass in Louisiana
You’ll find every type of bass in Louisiana waters, including yellow, spotted, black, white, striped, largemouth, and smallmouth. Of course, largemouth and spotted bass are species of black bass, but it’s important to cover all the names.
Largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass stand out the most, but you will find lakes with other bass species populating them as well.
Legal size and Limits
The state of Louisiana is pretty open and liberal on how many bass of various species you can catch and keep.
- Black Bass: Limit- 10. Minimum Length – 12” to 16” depending on location
- Striped Bass: Limit – 5 but no more than 2 over 30”. Minimum Length: None
- White Bass: Limit – 50. Minimum Length: None
- Yellow Bass: Limit – 50. Minimum Length:None
- Largemouth Bass: Limit – 10. Minimum Length: 12” to 16” depending on location
- Spotted Bass: Limit – 10. Minimum Length: 12” to 16” depending on location
Bottom Line
Louisiana is a top tier state, when it comes to bass fishing, with four lakes that easily slide into the top ten lakes in the country for bass fishing. The other lakes on this list aren’t far behind. Some of the lakes on this list are white-hot locations during certain parts of the year.
Other lakes and rivers cater to a specific rig or two. Even the lakes that didn’t make the list are bound to have bass in them because the entire state is known for it. Well-stocked lakes will yield bass.
Louisiana is also a beautiful state if a little on the hot side. The marshes, clustered with cypress trees and ancient oaks on the shoreline, all of which are blanketed in huge clusters of Spanish Moss, are truly something worth taking in, bass or no bass.
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